Stepping Away from the Abyss: A Gradual Approach Towards a New Security System in the Persian Gulf In a recently published book, Stepping Away from the Abyss: A Gradual Approach Towards a New Security System in the Persian Gulf, co-edited by Luigi Narbone and Abdolrasool Divsallar, the contributors provide a fresh analysis about the prospects for cooperation among local, regional, and international actors in the Persian Gulf. Javad Heiran-Nia March 2022 Strategic Analysis
Forgotten Kashmir: The Other Side of the Line of Control The political dispute over the territory of Kashmir is an intricate problem confronting the modern South Asian leadership. The intricacies of the conflict have led to voluminous writings on the region and evident from them is a greater focus on Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) as compared to the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The ‘escape’ of Pakistan–occupied Kashmir from the scholarly radar has begun to change only recently. Muneeb Yousuf March 2022 Strategic Analysis
China Risen? Studying Chinese Global Power It would be an understatement to say that there has been a significant rise in the number of academic and media writings on China in the past decade or so. Globally, Rush Doshi’s work has been well received. Thomas Orlik’s book on China’s economy is a significant one, and Kishore Mahbubani continues to challenge assumptions with works like Has China Won? In China’s Good War, Rana Mitter reminds us as to how China uses episodes from history to suit the political objectives of the present era. Avinash Godbole March 2022 Strategic Analysis
China and the WTO: Why Multilateralism Still Matters After rounds of marathon negotiations, China’s accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001 was a win-win for both China and the architects of the liberal market economy. For China, the accession provided unrestricted access to the market of member-countries and for the West, the attraction was partly the business opportunities for global conglomerates in China and the naïve expectations that China would transform itself to a liberal market economy by joining WTO. Rajiv Ranjan March 2022 Strategic Analysis
The Chinese Shadow on India’s Eastward Engagement: The Energy Security Dimension Securing energy supplies is vital for India, the world’s second most populous country, home to 1.38 billion people having a median age of 28.1 and where some seven million youth enter the workforce every year. Any discussion about India’s energy security would have to factor in China, the world’s most populous country. Its 1.41 billion people have a median age of 37.4 and about nine million youth were expected to enter China’s workforce in 2021. Madhu Nainan March 2022 Strategic Analysis
Procuring S-400: Changing Dynamics of Foreign Relations Despite looming threats of US sanctions, India has received the first of five S-400 air defence weapon systems from Russia. It will be interesting to see how this deal will affect India’s relationship with the US. Will the US impose sanctions as it has done on other countries dealing with Russia or will it choose to spare India, looking at the balance of power in the South Asian region and counter China’s increasing hegemony in the region? The US so far remains non-committal on whether it will waive sanctions on India under CAATSA. Richa Tokas March 2022 Strategic Analysis
The Mekong Is Flowing Ahead of the Brahmaputra: An Analysis of the Hydro-Political Behaviour of China and India This article analyses the hydro-political behaviour of riparian countries in the Mekong River Basin (MRB) vis-à-vis India’s attitude towards the Brahmaputra and upstream China. It analyses transboundary water cooperation in the MRB and the active participation of the stakeholders and then compares it with the Brahmaputra River Basin (BRB). It argues that the water management practices in the MRB are comparatively more ‘effective’ while the BRB is receding in this regard. Bhaskar Jyoti Deka March 2022 Strategic Analysis
Taliban and Al-Qaeda: The Unbreakable Relationship After the Taliban successfully took control of Kabul through diplomatic and intimidatory means, which included using force and striking deals with warlords and local military commanders, it has reached out to other states for recognition.1 The Taliban realizes that without international recognition it would be difficult to achieve both domestic and international legitimacy. Yaqoob-ul-Hassan March 2022 Strategic Analysis
The Myanmar Coup: Evolving Ethnic Rebel Politics and Civil Resistance Myanmar has been in a turmoil since the Tatmadaw (country’s military) ousted Aung San Suu Kyi’s government and seized power in February 2021.1 The coup took place hours before the new parliament could convene following the 2020 general elections. The junta has detained her since then and reimposed military rule after running a short experiment under a power-sharing arrangement with the National League for Democracy (NLD).2 There are concerns that Myanmar could morph into another Syria with widespread displacement and hunger, aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Roshni Kapur March 2022 Strategic Analysis
Counterterrorism between the Wars: An International History, 1919–1937 The 11 September 2001 attacks in the US changed the course of world history and made Al-Qaeda a state-like actor in international affairs, thereby confounding a core Realist idea. The event also increased interest in terrorism studies, creating two competing schools of thought within it, the classical and the critical school. The debates between these two broad perspectives have led to many fruitful advances and insights concerning the motivations, methods, and impact of both terrorism and counter-terrorism. Georgi Asatryan March 2022 Strategic Analysis